1. Field of the Invention
The present utility model relates to the technical field of a paper shredder, particularly to control apparatus for a paper shredder, and more particularly, to a paper shredder controller.
2. Related Art
Automated office appliances have proliferated in modern life and workspaces, and one of the most common appliances are paper shredders. Currently, paper shredders, some of them with automatic safety sensors, have found widespread use in homes and businesses. Paper shredders have a narrow gap through which paper is fed to the shredder cutting apparatus. By design, the gap in a paper feed passage is limited in size, to protect a user or other party from inadvertently coming into contact with the shredder blade, or to protect the shredder blade apparatus by limiting the opening into which foreign matter may fall. During normal operation, a paper shredder motor, coupled to paper shredder blades, is turned on to cause the shredder blades to rotate relative to each other, and to comminute, or shred, the material therebetween. A sensor may be configured to detect an object inserted into a feed opening and to initiate shredder operation by energizing a shredder motor and by drawing in the object for comminution by shredder blades. A shredder may remain energized and ready for operation, unless turned off. Although convenient, an activated shredder in standby mode may present a risk of injury to a human or other living being. To that end, some sophisticated shredders may employ clever, elegant multisensor safety systems. Some current paper shredders do not have protective devices to prevent inappropriate objects or body parts of a living being from entering into the throat of the shredder posing an unacceptable safety hazard. In addition, overfeeding of a paper shredder can, over time, cause poor performance and may reduce its operational lifespan. Some overfeeding detectors can be mechanical features, which depend upon design for usefulness.
When excessive paper is pushed into the feed opening (an “overfeed”), a thick cluster, or a bolus, of paper may form in, and may block, paper feed passage. This bolus may be sufficient in mass to overload the shredder motor, bringing shredder operation to a halt (a “jam”). Both overfeed and jam conditions impose detrimental stresses upon a shredder motor and the power drive train from the motor to the shredder blades. Jam and overfeed conditions may prompt a human operator to attempt to “clear” the jam or overfeed, which increase a risk of harm to the operator. However, complex apparatus attempting to solve the problem tend to be unacceptably costly. There is a need for paper shredder feed opening safety apparatus, which can improve user safety at a lower cost.